Archive for 2009

Perk did a beastly job keeping Dwight out of his comfort zone and effectively shutting him down the whole game. Human Growth Howard only had 5 points last night, the last time he scored single digit points was on November 3rd vesus guess who, the C’s! Look’s like Perk’s that kryptonite to a fraud “superman”. The whole squad played with a lot of balls yesterday. Sheed stepped up big and wouldn’t let anybody get comfortable on the court. Rondo was yet again spectacular, and the rest of the team fell into place from there. Celts get the win, and show the magic that there’s more to winning than just having a seven footer with a body like Tarzan and a heart like Jane.

“You’ve just got to go in and be prepared to go to war. You’ve got to fight him first, hit him first. He likes to be physical, but he doesn’t like anyone to be physical with him.” – PerkNBA

After carrying the offense down the stretch of Tuesday night’s win over Indiana, the last thing anyone imagined was that Paul Pierce would wake up later with an infection in one of his knees. But that’s exactly what happened to the Celtics captain, resulting in a procedure to drain the knee this morning. Pierce, who thus missed the team flight to Orlando for Friday’s Christmas Day game against Orlando, and will miss all of the upcoming four-city road trip.

Exactly the type of thing you don’t want to hear, but its better to take care of any issues now before they come up down the stretch. I am doubting on KG for Orlando either, but I’m still not doubting the Perk-Ray-Rondo-Sheed show. I expect Billy Walker to get the call back up for the road trip.

The C’s may have beaten the TWolves in fashion, but that didnt stop Big Al from giving his pal a little support:“Mad respect…The way he keeps playing, I think he has a chance to make the All-Star Game. I actually do see him a lot because (the Celtics) always play on a day we don’t play and I watch them every chance I get. To me, he had a quiet night (last night), compared to the games I have seen him play.” – Al Jefferson

And he wasn’t the only one doling out love for the Sensei, the Truth also came out:“Perk really doesn’t get a lot of credit for things he does because of me and Kevin and Ray (Allen), but I really think Perk is one of the more underrated big men in all the league. I mean, he brings it every night. He’s starting to be more and more consistent each and every night. Defensively what we’re asking him to do, we’re asking him to guard the best guys down low night in and night out, and he’s playing on a high level. In my eyes, he’s one of the top centers in not only the East but in all of basketball.” -Paul Pierce

The Beast Lair has gotten the hook up from the HoopGeek to have, as of right now, the sole reproduction rights to two of the most exact statistical formulas I have ever seen, the Tendinitis Plus (TEN+) and Advanced Statistical Scouting (A.S.S.) formulas. The Hollinger’s and Berri’s of the world should definitely pay attention, as the numbers that we are going to get into definitely carry some weight.

Advanced Statistical Scouting (A.S.S.) StatsScr: Scoring (Lg. Avg. = 15) – Gives neutral weight to the ability to score (ie. balances out volume shooters vs low-usage efficiency.)Reb: Rebounding (Lg. Avg. = 9) – Additional weight is given to those who procure the offensive variety.Bhd: Ballhandling (Lg. Avg. = 0) – A negative rating isn’t a death sentence but it is a sign that someone else on the team needs to be handling the ball and playmaking.Dsrp: Disruptive Defense (Lg. Avg. = 4) – Players with a rating = 4 aren't necessarily bad defenders, they just need to compensate for their inability to make consistent defensive plays with very good team defense.

Some brief thoughts: Its pretty evident by these numbers, and in real life, that Rondo is playing out of his mind right now. That doesn’t even take into account the last few games, post OKC, where his confidence has really soared. The same goes for the Sensei, Perk’s numbers have only gotten better of late. These two are proving why its the Starting 5 and not Big 3. Sheed, while out of shape, is earning his keep. Obviously, Shelden Williams has been a steal.